Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis is an infectious disease caused by Leishmania major. Cytokines such as IL-10 secreted by immune cells including macrophages, play an important role in the wound healing process of cutaneous leishmaniasis. In the present study, the expression level of IL-10 was investigated during treatment of macrophages with Leishmania major parasite. Methods: Peritoneal macrophages were isolated from BALB/c mice, the cells were cultured and treated with the standard strain of Leishmania major parasite for 24 and 72 hours. After incubation, macrophage RNA was extracted and IL-10 gene expression was investigated using the real-time PCR method. Results: The results showed that with increasing treatment time of 72 hours, the expression of IL-10 gene increased in the macrophages treated with Leishmania major, but this is not significant(P≤0.05). Conclusion: An increase in the level of anti-inflammatory cytokines after exposure to the Leishmania parasite is a reason for the non-healing of the cutaneous leishmaniasis.
